Dark Warrior
by Q Mitchell
Summary: A story of mortal enemies, ProtoMan Neo, a member of the Maverick Hunter Unit the Knights of the Future and Syntax a recent defector and Maverick. Rated PG-13 for some coarse language and intense action scenes. Read and Review, please.


INTRO The year is 2124, September 17 and I'm ProtoMan Neo. I've had a troubled past. One I care not to explain. In my recent years I took up Maverick Hunting, the same job which led to my death and re-birth at the turn of the century. Last year, I joined the Maverick Hunting Division 5147, or Knights of the Future. It was a small Hunting group. There was ProtomanX, our leader, and Wulf, second in command. Then we had Aeirem Blaze, who stood out more than anyone because of her incredible knack for computers. We also had Rocket Jocky, a newer member. Plus, we had Gold Stryker, the only organic, Hunter-12, and Blizzard, the resident couple. To thank them all for accepting me, I wanted to bring them a new member. His name was Syntax. I ordered his parts from BioGen Reploid Building and Repair outlet about August last year and built him by hand. I guess that makes me his father, in a weird way. I knew he'd be the perfect member. Around seven months ago, he went Maverick and attacked my friends. One was severely hurt, and he tried to kill another. But Wulf destroyed him. Being a bit naïve, I found another Reploid named Silver Streak and invited him to join. He seemed normal. After he registered to join, he told me he was built at BioGen. I told him what happened with Syntax, and I was reluctant to recommend him to join. He told me to relax, that they recalled all Syntax models because their control chips were infected with the Maverick Virus. He assured me that his series wouldn't go Mav. I believed him. He went Maverick and disappeared. But it's cool. I learned my lesson. I just wouldn't recruit. No one really blamed me for our two main Mavericks; how could I have known? I just knew my troubles were over. Not really. I can't explain it here, so I'll just tell you the whole story. I call it.  
  
Dark Warrior  
Capturing the Bait  
  
Silver Streak sat in the van on the corner of Kensdayle, a small neighborhood in Michigan. Brandi Williams stayed a few houses down the block. Now normally, he wouldn't be watching an organic, but she was special. Syntax was doing research on Neo since November last year. Silver smiled. All of the Knights thought Syntax was dead. But he was alive and well, hiding out in the Skull Castle in New York. Syntax had found out that Neo used be an organic, by the name of Damon Knight. He was married to Brandi Williams. With this information, Syntax would capture Neo's wife and use her as bait to lure Neo into a trap. Silver was in Detroit, waiting to receive orders. The lead Maverick Trooper sat in the driver's seat and Silver was in the passenger's seat, listening to the going-ons inside the house, via the transmitters that were set. Around the New Years, Silver and some MavTroops came to the house, disguised as Jehovah's Witnesses. While they were inside, small transmitters were placed around the house. They had found out that Brandi stayed there along with her daughter and son. Her son DeAngelo Williams, was away training to be a Special Crimes Unit commander. His sister, Victoria Williams had been a member when she was 18. She had one last case to turn in, but something happened and the case was lost. Whatever it was, they'd never know. His communicator beeped, and he answered it. "Silver here." His communicator replied with static, and then a voice spoke. "Silver, start the plan. I'll set everything up, so I want you to be here in 6 hours." "All right boss. I'll be there, with the captive in 6." "Good, good. Now, go get the bait for the prey."  
  
Brandi Williams stood in the kitchen in a black sweat suit, wondering what she would fix for dinner. "Victoria, you hungry?" She got no reply. "Figures.I'll just fix the norm." She reached above the microwave and pulled down a stainless steel bowl. She reached for a small container labeled 'Chicken Dinner' and sprinkled a few drops in the bowl. She set it in the microwave and pressed the start button. A second later the bell went off. She pulled out a bowl of hot, rotisserie chicken, sprinkled with a dash of lemon pepper. She placed in another bowl, and this bowl had some mashed potatoes and gravy in it when it came out. While she was fixing the rest of the food, the doorbell rang. "Victoria, would you get that please?" Victoria Williams walked from her room, loud techno music blasting, wearing a pair of white sweat pants and a blue tank top that read 'Spoiled Brat'. She opened the door to see whoever it was. Silver looked up and smiled. Five more men stood behind him. "Hi, I'm from the Jehovah's-" He didn't get a chance to finish; she closed the door in his face. She started back to her room when an explosion threw her off her feet. She glanced back to see the six men enter. She got up to try and fight them when she saw the leader had an arm cannon. "Holy shit, you guys are Mavericks!" "Correction. Alpha Mavericks." Silver pulled his hand back and let it loose, striking her in the face. She went down, already out. Brandi stepped into the living room to see what was happening. Didn't take her long to notice something was wrong. She turned and ran. "Get her." The MavTroops took off. Two kept on her tail as she ran into the dining room. She ducked and rolled under the table, making one crash into it. The other leapt over it and pinned her to the wall. His hand flipped and vanished as an arm cannon took its place. He raised the cannon to shoot her when she grabbed his arm. She pulled him towards her and shoved him back, sending him crashing into the table. She then looked up and saw another, his cannon raised and charging. She ducked as the plasma blast landed above her head. She half-crawled, half-ran her way to the kitchen. She jumped over the table as the remaining three chased after her. She grabbed the butcher's knife of the rack over the stove and threw it. It flew through a trooper's neck and the first 4 inches were visible out the back before he fell. The second leapt on the table and unclipped his sabre, igniting it quickly. A swift blow to the table leg tilted it at an uneven slant and he was sent to the floor. She snatched the sabre out of the air and twirled it with trained expertise. As the last MavTroop charged her, she spun around him and jabbed the sabre in his back. As the last one got up, he blocked the exit out the back of the house. She took a step forward and he did also. The Maverick mimicked a step to the left. She a faked a left, then a right, then another right as she charged him head on in the gut, tossing him to the ground. As she ran out the back door, she thought that the football practice really paid off. She ran down the driveway and started back inside the house to get her daughter when a capture net tossed her to her feet. Silver smiled as her pulled the net down the driveway to a black van waiting for them. After he tossed the net in, he hopped in as it pulled off.  
  
Hook, Line and Sinker  
  
ProtoMan Neo sat at his monitor station, playing 'Lord of the Fish Monkey'. It was a quiet day. Wulf sat in his big leather chair, polishing his black armor. Rocket Jocky left his station to get his seventh bowel of green Jell-O. Neo wondered if that was all he ate. Hunter-12 and Blizzard were engaged in a friendly sparring match in the holo-chamber, and Gold Stryker was twirling his prize weapon, Gold Slasher in his hand. Gold said he was an organic, but Neo wanted to debate that fact. Neo knew one of Gold's arms was a Reploid one, so that made him eighty-five percent human and fifteen percent Reploid, which, in Neo's eyes, made him a Cyborg. Aeirem Blaze walked in, waving to everyone. She took her usual spot at her favorite station, and plugged in her data link. Neo walked to his locker and looked inside. He grabbed his helmet and put it on. He had received it shortly after his friend Stacey Becker, his creator, activated him. He then grabbed his bag with his spare clothes in it. He paused, looking at his prize invention, the CrowdPleaser. A nifty little piece of machinery, it was. He had built it from scratch, and it was the only one. He made sure it was a Hunter's best friend. A small plasma reactor core fit on the gun on the side. On the left side, there was a small flame-thrower, and on the right there was a grappling launcher. On the barrel, there was a barrel towards the top for the plasma, and under that one, there was a larger one. Under the barrel, there was a pump, and once Neo pulled it back and pulled the trigger, a grenade would fly out the bottom barrel. He walked out the locker room and said bye to all and left. He had bought an old warehouse down the street and turned it into his own headquarters. He entered the building and turned on the lights. He sat at his workstation and was about to modify the files on his computer when he noticed he had an incoming massage. He activated it and got snow. He sat down and polished his gun while waiting. The static was probably from satellite interference. "Hello Neo." said a familiar voice. The gun fell to the floor as Neo stared at the screen. "YOU!" "Yep, it's me." Syntax said with a reassuring nod. "I know I should be dead; Wulf did cut off my head. Or so he thought. Not all Syntax models were recalled. Anyway, I'm calling you from one of my quaint little bases here in the Congo because I have something you want."  
Start of a Long, Hard Journey  
  
As the transport beam ended, Neo's body took shape. He didn't bother to tell anyone he left. He just came here. Bright mid-day sun shone on his face. He got here by the coordinates Syntax gave him. He couldn't believe what had happened. He left his family years ago to keep something like this from happening. There was a light side to his problem. Syntax didn't take his daughter, which would have made things a whole lot worse. He decides on a path off to his left. As he walks, he hears on the sounds of the jungle; water running in a stream somewhere, the call of the bird, their song high and sweet, the rustle of the leaves as animals move through them. While walking, he gets accustomed to the noises. After a few hundred yards, a muffled whirring sound grabs his attention. He looks towards the sound, and he sees the camera high in a tree, cleverly painted to blend in with the background. He used advanced vision to follow the power cable, hidden as well. He followed it until he heard a door close. He crouched down in the bushes and watched. Syntax was leaving a building, the initials 'JB1' written above it. He waits for a moment before he follows his rival Syntax. He moves swiftly and quietly, ready to attack his foe and demand the whereabouts of his wife. As he enters a clearing Syntax went into, a metal rod slams into his skull. He tumbles forward, quickly gaining his balance as he fires at the MavTroop. Pain erupts in Neo's side as another rod connects. He looks up and spots another MavTrooper. He prepares to attack, but stops as he ducks another one. He takes some steps back and gets a good look at his attackers. He realizes it's a whole platoon of Mavericks in the surrounding jungle. He backs up until rocks tumble down. He glances back and sees the rocks fall farther and farther down, a long, steep drop down. "Looks like you walked into a trap, 'father'." Neo recognizes the sound of Syntax's voice. "Common sense should've told you that someone would be watching what the camera sees." "I may have made a mistake Syntax, but you'd better not. If you slip up, I'm gonna make sure you die screaming." "Oh don't worry, Neo. I won't slip up. You see, you were just lured here so you could be killed. Troops, finish him off." As Syntax walks off laughing, the MavTroops raise their cannons to fire. He would fight back, but there are just too many of them. As the charging of cannons are heard, he closes his eyes and raises his cannon, blasting. He is a Hunter, sworn to take down Mavericks, no matter the cost. He manages to pick off several before something large and black rams into him, sending him and his attacker off the cliff.  
  
Guardian Angel  
  
As he is sent flying over the cliff, the barrage of firing plasma drowns his yell of surprise out. He sees the bright blasts fly overhead as he crashes into a small ledge, twenty feet from the cliff. Whatever crashed into him gets up ands pulls him roughly into a little cave just as plasma blasts blow the ledge to pieces. As the firing stops, the figure lets go of him ands walks off. A moment later, a kerosene lamp illuminates the cave, revealing a small table and another lamp. As Neo gets up, he gets a good look at them. A black ninja outfit covers their body; a matching cape flows behind them and a cowl shows nothing but their eyes. Their right arm hangs limply at their side as the left hand holds the shoulder. "Who are you?" Neo asks. "I'm your guardian angel." The person responds. Neo is surprised the voice that responds is female, but he says nothing. "Why did you save me?" "How do you know I saved you? Maybe I want to kill you, just like Syntax." "You said you were my guardian angel. Angels don't kill." "I never said I was a good angel." The figure responds as they light the second lamp and hands it to him. As she does so, she stares at him with her hazel eyes. She says something, which sounded like she called him father, but Neo couldn't tell. As he starts to ask her to repeat the question, she speaks before him. "My name is Kali. Who I really am and where I came from is none of your concern. Nor is why did I save you. I have my reasons. As for you, don't be fooled by what brung you here." "What do you mean by that?" "Take this tunnel here," Kali says, pointing to a passage hidden by shadows, completely ignoring the question. She appears to say something, but doesn't. A tense moment passes before she speaks. "You will come to the entrance to Armored Armadillo's area. Reach the end and there will be something for you." "How do I know I can trust you?" "You don't," she says before grabbing the first lamp. She heads to a tunnel heading upwards. "We will meet again," she tells him before she enters the tunnel and kicks a rock. As she does so, a large boulder falls into place, sealing the passage. Neo stands there for a moment before he decides to take her advice and follow the tunnel.  
  
15 MINUTES LATER  
  
As Neo enters Armadillo's former base, he can see the remains of destroyed Mavericks, ten years old. He leaps over chasms and walks slowly down sloped hills. He steps over destroyed Maverick parts as he observes blast marks. He climbs up walls, walking down the trolley tracks. Neo gasps as he takes a tumble, falling down a large chasm. He lands with a thud, the dust billowing up, causing him to sneeze. He slowly stands to his feet and presses a button on his belt, causing the square buckle to light up, throwing off some light. He continues forward. He cautiously leaps over spike beds as he navigates through the long abandoned tunnels. After scaling another wall, he stands on a trolley cart. He feels his feet magnetically fastened to the floor of the trolley before it zooms off. Air whips past Neo's face as the vehicle picks up pace as it goes up and down ramps, flying over more spike beds and wider chasms. After going up a huge upward slope, light is visible up ahead. It gets brighter as he closes in on it. The track swiftly slopes downward as he is exposed to the world outside again. A sharp curve leads to a short upward slope, sending the trolley flying through the air. As it reaches its peak height halfway to the entrance to Armadillo's chamber, the magnetic hold lets go. As it starts it's downward descent, Neo jumps for all he's worth. He slams into the wall hard, but since he doesn't want to end up a twisted wreck at the bottom of the canyon like the trolley, he kicks off and boosts his thrusters, sending him back towards the wall. He continues to kick off and thrust back until he reaches the top. When he does, he notices a red enhancement capsule 20 feet away. But right now, he is too tired to care. Neo slumps forward, already going into Automatic Re-Energization before he hits the ground.  
  
Phase Two  
  
Syntax lights a cigarette as he stares at a group of Reploids called the Renegades, another surprise from Father. "So lemme get this straight," Syntax says as he paces before the group. "At the main base, Lestat managed to fuse that stolen Gateway Device with a ship, creating a dimension-jumping spacecraft. While testing it, the ship created a black hole, which it fell through, spitting him out in the Talyl system, which is a variation of Urth and Earth?" Syntax asks. "Sounds a little far-fetched, even for Lestat," Silver comments, polishing his armor. One of the Organics, named Pollux, nods. "He landed on the planet Ryutth, our planet and saved us. He said if we helped him, he would send us back with those Maverick Troopers to free our imprisoned world." "Sounds like a pact with Satan to me." "Silver, shut up." Syntax says. "Well, how could any of you help us?" The large one, the one called Replica, flexes his muscles, sending spikes up throughout his armor. A MavTroop tosses a diamond at him. Replica grabs it and squeezes it. When he opens his hands, shards of glass fall out. The spikes began to glow before he was enveloped in gray light. As it disappears, a large gray boulder is where Replica once was. Duplicate, the female Reploid, charges her huge ash gray cannons. She aims one and fires. A black hole, spherical in shape, forms. MavTroops struggle to escape the gravity pull, but are helpless as the are pulled apart, down to the last wire and crushed. A shot from her second cannon hits a MT transport truck. The vehicle slowly disappears, fading away like grains of sand; the same way it falls through a person's open hand. As Duplicate blows the smoke from her cannons, Carbon Copy, the smallest of the Reploids, shifted his form between Syntax and Silver before returning to his regular form. "Replica, Carbon, you stay here. You may come in handy. The rest of you leave my base." As the remaining Renegades depart, Silver Streak follows Syntax towards the stream behind Jungle Base 3. "Hey! You guys shoulda gotten rid of this shit hours ago!" Syntax hollers at the MavTroopers. They quickly scramble, gathering the neon blue barrels and popping the lids, pouring the contents in the water. It appears to be red, but the color fades almost instantly as it hits the water, the scent of honey and cinnamon filling the air. "Syntax, what is that stuff?" "A fail-safe. It won't kick it until a few years from now. But these are Mother's orders." Running footsteps is heard and Syntax turns, watching one of the messenger droids come his way. "Sir, we've found an energy signature. The MavTroops didn't kill Neo."  
Origins  
  
As Neo climbs to his feet, the capsule activates. The blue protection shield vanishes, and a hologram flickers to life. "Dr. Light?" "Ah yes, ProtoMan Neo, my finest creation." the hologram of the famous inventor replies. "Creation? Oh no. Mega Man X was yours, not me." "But you were mine also! I knew Mega would still need family, so I upgraded you to Neo status." "That's a lie!" Neo says, pointing an accusing finger at the hologram. "My birth name is Antonio Xavier Smith and I was changed into a Reploid by.by." Neo knows he knew his creator when he entered the jungle. "See? You are my creation, Neo. That name must be a result of a faulty memory file. Step into the capsule. I have enhancements for you." With that, the hologram vanishes. For a minute, Neo feels confused. Unwillingly, he steps into the capsule. Almost instantly, he feels stuck to the floor. The chamber hums with power as the energy light above him glows. The hum becomes so loud; it vibrates the capsule before lightning strikes it, sending a powerful proton beam inside Neo. Swirls of indigo, red, blue and black, orange and purple light forms around Neo before the armor is complete. His light red boots are replaced with deep red ones, black slashes going at a slant towards to foot. The torso armor also darkened in color, getting the horizontal stripes this time. A black helmet appears on his head, a black visor over his eyes once again, and a matching faceguard covers his mouth and nose. Red stripes are the designs on it, and his cannons are toned to match it. As he steps from the capsule, a plasma blast screams past his head. He turns around, mostly by reflex, and fires. Before he realizes it, he's taken out 7 MavTroops without a thought. As he continues to take down his enemies, Syntax slowly walks up behind Neo. As Neo shoots down another Trooper, Syntax places the blades of a neuro-tazer into Neo's neck. Instantly, Neo's programs shut down and he slumps to the ground. "Ok people, bag 'im. And clean up this debris."  
Just for Fun  
  
"You know Syntax, Neo has caused us a lotta trouble." Silver inquires as they drag Neo back to the base. "Well duh.good guys are supposed to do that for us villains." "Can we kill him? Please say we can kill him." "No Silver." Syntax says before he suddenly stops. "What?" "We could get bonus brownie points if we conduct an experiment." "Experiment? What kind of experiment?" "If we can draw some of the Knights into this." Now a bit curious and scared, Silver Streak lets Neo's body fall to the jungle floor. "And how are we gonna do that?" "Provoke them. I want you to take a Crane model Goliath Mech and start a fight. Just make sure they get here." "A Crane? I'm stuck with a Crane model?" Syntax nods. "Budget cuts." "Syntax, I like you, a lot, in a non-homo way, but uh.I ain't takin' on the Knights by myself. Even in a mech." "Oh all right, fine. Send in a clone, but make sure they find out where we're at." "Wanna tell me why I'm doing this?" Syntax smiles evilly as he lifts Neo off the ground. "Just for fun, Silver .just for fun."  
  
"Anyone seen Neo?" Aeirem asks as she sits down at her console. Wulf shakes his head. "Aw man!" "What is it Rocky?" Aeirem asks as Rocket Jockey comes into the room, looking very gloomy. "The Jell-O is gone!" Before anyone can respond to the maroon moron's obsession of the jiggly green stuff, a warning light goes off. Immediately, Aeirem is up on it. "Brace yourself people.we got company." A nice chunk of the wall is blown to bits as a gray battle Mech lumbers inside. "Hello ladies! How about a little fun?" Silver says as he charges the cluster of Knights. From months and years of training, they move from his path and scatter. "That idiot! Do we get our Mechs Wulf?" Rocky asks. "Naw Rocky. This'll be good target practice." The Maroon Hunter grins as he pulls out his sledgehammer. They charged as Silver concentrates on Aeirem. As the huge metal Mech fist slams into the floor, making a nice crater, Aeirem rolls out of the way and fires, nailing the Mechs shoulder joint, crippling it. Rocky smashes the hammerhead into the leg as Gold leaps onto the Mech's back, removing the main circuitry panel, tampering with the wires. Wulf stands in one spot as he aims for the waist as Aeirem uses her agile reflexes to move around the Mech; taking shots at main joints. Gold ignites his vibro-dagger and starts removing wires. As Silver Streak pilots the Mech towards, Wulf as he fires a charged shot, ripping the Mech in half. As the upper half crashes to the floor, Gold yells "Hey, I'm workin' here!" The legs fall uselessly to the ground as Silver works the good arm, dragging the Mech over the floor. None of the Hunters move once a popping sound is heard. Gold had destroyed the CPU board. The Mech stops moving as electricity is seen, running it's course the ruined battle armor. Aeirem, Wulf and the rest move for cover as Gold leaps down and runs for cover. The crippled Mech explodes in a bright flash of light. As it ends, the Hunters are happy to see that other than potion of the wall, and the fist print; there was very little damage to the base itself. Aeirem was looking at the mild wreckage from the Mech when she saw him. Silver -or what was left of him- on the floor. The blast had removed the majority of his body, except an arm, which was loosely attached to a shoulder blade and head. Rocky picked up the remains. After examining it, he gripped it by the wrist and started to drag it to the MedLab. "Just as I thought; a Kamikaze replica droid. Obviously, we were supposed to find something. I'll go DL the memory banks to find it." "Well, that was interesting." Wulf says. "Aeirem, you see how the Mech got past the outer security field. Rocky, try to contact Neo. He may know something about this." A few minutes later, Rocket reports that Neo isn't responding to any form of transmissions. "Well isn't that just dandy.Gold, Rocky, you two go to his base, see if he's there. Aeirem, I'll need a damage and cost report in twenty minutes." With that said, Wulf heads to his office.  
The Rescue  
  
"..and if you don't hurry, she will be dead. Bye Neo." the monitor shows snow as the transmission ends. "So Neo left by himself to save this woman?" Aeirem asks. "Apparently so." Gold says. "I wonder who she is." "I got the coordinates, guys." Rocky says. "I think we should let Neo handle this by himself. We'll just tell Wulf something came up." Aeirem says. "Yeah." Gold adds. "We should get back and help with repairs." The Hunters leave the base, heading towards their own, hoping Neo makes it back ok.  
  
Meanwhile, back in the jungle, the still unconscious Neo is tossed into a holding cell. Syntax turns to Silver. "Are they coming?" "Nope. They figure this must be personal, which is why Neo didn't tell them. Either that or they smelled a trap." "Well all right. Set the main part in motion. At least we can do that much. You go take your place. This should be good and done within the hour."  
  
As Neo awakens, he spies two MavTroops outside his cell. He can barely remember what happened. All he needed to know was where his wife was being kept. As he climbed to his feet one of the MT's turned around and raised a cannon. "Halt." It said with it's digitized voice. Neo simply aimed and fired, the blast ripping the MT to shreds. Before the second guard could turn, Neo blasted him in his back. He then steps to the door and kicks it off it's hinges. As it clatters to the floor, he wonders why the bars weren't reinforced. But to Neo, it doesn't really matter. They have created a wave in Neo's life by harming his daughter and kidnapping his wife. For that, they will pay. As Neo steps into the hall, he notices that there weren't anymore MavTroops. As he continues to walk, he wonders where they could have gone. He decides to turn right and runs down the corridor, looking at all the empty cells. As he wonders where his wife is, the ground suddenly gives way and he falls through the air, nearly thirty long feet before he lands hard on a large slab of rock in an underground river. As he climbs to his feet, a small Reploid walks in from the shadows, about 5 foot 2 in height, his darkly toned armor blending in with the shadows. As Neo prepares to fight, movement catches his ear behind him. He turns and stares in awe at the eight foot six Reploid stands, spikes protruding from his armor. As he swings his large fist, Neo leaps backwards, right into the foot of the other Maverick. He is knocked to the floor, but quickly rolls out of the way as the larger one goes for another punch. The smaller one attacks Neo head on, throwing furious punches and swift kicks as Neo blocks them all with grace. He then grabs the Maverick's foot in mid-kick and throws him hard, sending him off the small island. The loud clunk of metal on rock is heard just before a splash. With him out of the way, Neo focuses on the large one, swiftly dodging large plasma bursts. Neo jumps up and delivers a swift kick to the Maverick's head. The Maverick stumbles and Neo shots the behemoth in the knee, bringing him to the ground, half of his body submerged in water. Neo places a boot on his head and pushes, allowing to swift current to carry him away. Before Neo can celebrate, a plasma blast whizzes past his head. He turns to see Silver Streak, cannons blazing. Neo ducks and jumps, moving in on his longtime nemesis, his own cannons firing. Silver is able to keep pace, but not for long. As Neo gets in range, he pulls something from his back and twirls it around. A thick metal rod extends into a battle staff and Neo swings, bringing down onto Silver Streak's left cannon. As the Maverick takes a step back to gather himself, Neo swings again, tripping him. As Silver Streak lay on his back, Neo raises the battle staff high over head. "Wait, Neo don't!" Silver screams. His plea falls onto deaf ears and Neo brings the weapon down, straight through the Mavericks skull. The Maverick Hunter removes the weapon and places it on his back. Then, kneeling down on one knee, he pulls Silver's skull apart, searching for the CPU memory chip. After he finds it, he carefully pulls it from the body and places it inside a safety compartment on his cannon. He looks up and spies the hole he fell down. Pushing his thrusters to the maximum, he manages to fly through it. As he does so, he fires a charged shot, breaking the next two floors. As he lands, his cybernetic ears hear footsteps around the corner. He aims his cannon and steps around it. Kali lets out a short gasp as she sees Neo. She almost looks surprised. Neo lowers his cannon. "What are you doing here?" She asks. "I'm looking for my wife. Then I plan on leaving." "Well all right. You go ahead, I'll keep the oncoming MavTroops busy." With that, she turns and runs down the hall. Behind him, Neo hears faint crying. He turns and runs toward the sound. A few cells down, Neo stops to a halt. He can barely contain his joy. His wife Brandi is sitting in the corner of the cell, her clothes in need of changing and a little bruised, but otherwise ok. "Brandi?" She looks up and a big smile crosses her face. "Neo!" he places his hands on the bars and rips the door off. She throws her arms around him and Neo does the same. After two decades, he finally sees his wife again. Good fortune was laid upon her because she has barely aged. "Brandi." Neo says in a hushed voice. "Damon, baby, please get me out of here." "I will." Neo grabs her hands and runs down the hall to a teleportation pad and steps one it. As the teleportation stops, the large double-door exit of the base is seen less than 20 feet away. As they make a run for it, Brandi says something. Before Neo can respond, a plasma blast ricochets off his head and he falls limp, already blacking out. The last thing he hears before passing out is Brandi's screams of protest.  
The Final Confrontation  
  
As Neo awakens, he groggily climbs to his feet. He takes off his helmet and shakes his head. As he looks at the back of his headgear, he sees that it is no longer battle worthy. He turns around and sees another pair of double doors atop a large staircase. As he makes his way to the stairs, the huge doors open and MavTroops flood out. At least 30 stand ready to take on the lone Hunter. Neo recklessly runs up the staircase blasting, picking off the MTs. One steps forward and starts shooting. Apparently, this one was outfitted with a rapid-fire cannon. Neo leaps high into the air and lands right next to the MavTroop. Neo then runs around in circles, causing the Maverick to pick off most of his partners. Neo stops and does a sweep kick, bringing the Maverick to the floor. He then stands and brings his foot down on it's head. Neo pulls his beam sabre off his clip and swings it, cutting a Trooper in half. He then throws it like a spear, impaling another, hanging him from the wall. As he steps through the doors, they close behind him, bathing the room in darkness. A sharp clap is heard and the room is illuminated. A cylinder staircase is at the back of the small chamber, with Syntax perched atop it. He is clad in full battle armor, with a black flowing cape behind him. At his side on her knees is Brandi. "Let her go, Syntax, and I may let you live." Syntax pulls Brandi to her feet and places her in front of him, a dagger close to her neck. "I don't think you're in the position to make threats, Neo. Do not take another step or I kill her." "Neo, what are you doing? Shoot the bastard!" "Another sound out of you and I cut your throat." Syntax says. "Neo, kill him! Kill him -" Brandi doesn't get the chance to finish the sentence as Syntax gracefully slits her throat, from ear to ear. "NO!" Neo yells in a howl of rage. Syntax grabs Brandi's now lifeless body and throws her at Neo. Her body makes a dull thump as blood pours from her wound. Neo quickly falls to his knees in shock. "You can't say I didn't warn her, father." with that, he looks up at him, rage and hatred filled in his eyes. Neo springs to his feet and rushes at Syntax, throwing punches and kicks. Syntax keeps up with Neo blow for blow, a smug grin on his face. Quickly, Neo switches to his cannon and fires, knocking Syntax off his tower. As the Maverick climbs to his feet, he removes the cape. "Ok, playtime is over." As Syntax runs back up the stairs, Neo crouches, his arm cannon behind him. Eight compartments flip on his cannon, revealing eight attached beam sabres. "You're right.it is over." He then ignites them all and thrusts his arm forward. Syntax is caught off guard as the beam sabres flow through him. They all are dangerously close to his generator, forming a tight circle around it. "Wait.Neo, don't kill me." "And why not?" Neo asks, lifting his arm and Syntax off the ground. "Because.you're supposed to take me back.to kill me isn't your programming Neo." Neo charges his cannon. "Neo.what have you become?" Syntax asks, CF fluids leaking from his body. "What you made me, son.I am ProtoMan Hyper, the Dark Warrior." "NOOO!" "HYPER BLAST!" With those words, Syntax's scream is cut short as Neo fires, sending the Maverick high into the air. As he lands, dead, Neo walks down the staircase and rips Syntax's head off. He pulls the syntheskin off and pulls apart the frame, removing his CPU. Grabbing the cape, he walks to Brandi's body and lifts her up, wrapping her body in the cape. As Neo leaves the base, Kali walks up to him. After seeing the body in his arms, she places a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Neo.for what it's worth.I'm sorry." He nods at her as she backs away. Leaping into the trees, she darts away. As the Hunter sees Kali for the last time he teleports away, hoping to leave this horrific ordeal behind.  
Epilog  
  
Three Days Later- Greenlawn Cemetery, Detroit, Michigan USA  
  
As ProtoMan Hyper stands off to the side of the funeral process as they bury his wife's casket, his heart breaks as he sees his son, DeAngelo, comforting his sister, who is crying uncontrollably. The attendance isn't too big. Brandi didn't know too many people. He wants to comfort his children so badly, but he knows he can't. He just wouldn't fit into their world. The only thing he can do is return back to California with his friends and hope he can leave this ordeal behind. Hyper has just crossed half the globe to regain his wife, only to see her slip away. But he did so for that thing called love and that is something very few machines could do. Hopefully, with the two main problems in his life gone, he could try to get back to a normal life. But what is normal? He has so many questions. Who is Kali? And why did she help him? Furthermore, who built him? Doctor Light, or someone completely different? Perhaps he may never know.  
Copyrights Aeirem Blaze, property of Dawn. Gold Stryker and the Gold Slasher, all of which are property of Kyle Davis/Hyblaean Productions. Used with permission Wulf, Urth, and Knights of the Future, property of Matt. ProtoMan Neo/Hyper, MavTroops, Silver Streak, Kali, DeAngelo and Victoria Williams, property of Q Mitchell, Nightwing/Overload Productions. Brandi Williams used with permission. Syntax property of Anne Barrie a recent piece of information. used without permission. 


End file.
